Research for Ethical Development Symposium

On 13-14 July JCU’s Research for Ethical Development (JCU RED) group held its inaugural research symposium at the Cairns Institute via hybrid delivery mode. Over two engaging days group members and guests delivered two panels and 18 papers, including Zoom presentations from Solomon Islands, Germany and the UK.

The JCU RED group works to promote ethical development research and practice through engaged scholarship, applied research, teaching, training, and end-user collaborations. We work in the Pacific, Northern Australia, Asia, and other world regions.

One of the most exciting and enjoyable aspects of the symposium was the space that it created for rich cross-disciplinary discussions. Online communication platforms provide many valuable opportunities for collaborative work, but there is something special about coming together in person. Many attendees at the symposium commented on the benefits of coming together on campus and the opportunities that this provided for meeting new colleagues and engaging in research exchanges that would not have otherwise occurred.

Presentations ranged from interrogations of corporate tax evasion to shifting baselines in evaluating development projects, colonial and post-colonial forestry in PNG, epistemic violence linked to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, sexual violence during the Rwandan genocide and restorative justice, the embeddedness of culture within health systems, belief in conspiracy theories, the centring of power and politics in conservation, development and health initiatives, gardening and ecologies of slow hope, and governance challenges surrounding the Burdekin basin.

The symposium was co-coordinated by JCU RED’s Chair and Co-Chair, Dr Kearrin Sims and Dr Claire Holland with the support of members. Jennifer McHugh provided crucial administrative assistance and Stewart Lockie and The Cairns Institute provided catering and venue support.

JCU RED continues to grow and has a number of exciting plans in the pipeline for next year. If you would like to join the group, email Kearrin.sims@jcu.edu.au or Claire.holland@jcu.edu.au.